McAuliffe signed an executive order Tuesday at a minority-owned staffing company in Richmond.

The order requires state agencies to spend 42 percent of their discretionary spending on certified small, women-owned and minority businesses. McAuliffe is also directing agencies to contract exclusively with small businesses that have no more than 25 employees and make no more than $3 million a year for contracts less than $10,000.

The Democratic governor said the new executive order was a fulfillment of promises he made during last year's gubernatorial campaign.